“In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.” Psalm 5:3
Don’t you dislike waiting? I sure do! Why does it seem as if I always hit the red lights when I’m running late? Or no matter which checkout line I choose, it will be the slowest? I’m sure those things aren’t true, but it sure seems that way! But that kind of waiting pales in comparison to some waiting that is asked of us. When we’re waiting for the relationship to improve, or the prodigal to return. Maybe we’re waiting for God to make a way out of a very difficult situation. Or perhaps we’re waiting for some answers to our difficult questions. Whatever we’re waiting for, that kind of waiting is never easy. When I was once in a waiting period I ran across this verse and was immediately struck by a few things.
First was the realization that God does hear us. Sometimes in the waiting, we think maybe God hasn’t heard our many pleas regarding this situation. Or maybe He doesn’t grasp how serious it is. Well, that word that is translated “hear” includes a sense of understanding. He doesn’t just hear us as if we’re some annoying background noise. He understands. The second aspect to strike me is that He wants us to bring our requests to Him. It may seem as if your request can never happen, or that God will never agree to it. That’s okay. Bring it to Him anyway. In fact, did you notice that “requests” is plural? Bring them all to Him. And bring them every morning. That’s not because God might forget by the next day. It’s because it’s still on our hearts and minds and God wants to hear all that is concerning us.
The final thing that struck me, and struck me hard, is that after bringing our requests to God, we are to wait in expectation. We don’t give Him our requests, and then continue to worry about them. Nor do we bring them with a defeatist attitude. Too often, when I ask something of God, I’ve already decided that He’s not going to grant my request. That’s sure not how David prayed, is it? When he prayed, he was on the lookout for God’s answer. It’s like he was standing on the highest hill, excitedly waiting for that first glimpse of God’s answer to come over the horizon. Don’t get me wrong. He wasn’t just lounging around the campfire waiting for God to act. Psalm 5 goes on to talk about things to do while waiting: continue praying, go to church and worship communally, be glad and sing for joy. But even as you do those things, keep an eye peeled for the amazing way God is going to give you the answer you’re waiting for.